Which plant in your garden have you found to be the most useful?

Definitely the geraniums Have blue, dark pink and two different pale pink.Trying to get a white one but they are hard to find .Fantastic ground cover. Closely followed by alchemilla. And aquilegia

My most useful plants are anything that states 'perennial, ground cover' , creeping phlox, snow in summer etc etc. Makes the chore of weeding so much easier.

Erysimum (the purple one) has good all-year interest in my garden. And it does not get eaten.

Mixed with antirrhinums (pink & white), Verbena bonariensis (purple), fennel and lavender (silver) it made a lovely show which all bloomed until the first frost.

Winter flowering pansies. They are cheerful all winter long in spite of rain, wind, frost and snow ??

jingl is this Wargrave? I agree it spreads itself but I do like it. It came from my mum's garden and is happy in sun or shade and is useful for filling up places.

Funnygran If your soil isn't acidic you do have to give Rhodies some tlc or their leaves go yellow and they don't thrive. I give mine a couple of doses of Miracid each year to keep them happy
I hope yours gives you as much pleasure as mine has given me.

janeainsworth your rhododendron is the same as one we bought and planted last weekend so not being an expert gardener I have high hopes for it. We were taken by friends to Lea Gardens in Derbyshire where there are 3 acres of rhododendrons of every variety. Well worth a visit and of course a garden centre at the end.

My camelia bloomed for nearly two months - but they are a little temperamental about soil.

Our clematis is amazing, much as it drove my husband mad when we moved in and it had swallowed up the garage. After cutting back, it grows and flowers so quickly

Rosemary. I cook with it a lot.

I agree about Erysiums, especially the Bowles Mauve which goes on and on.We have also got a creamy white one, a yellow one and one which is amber in colour.
All the hardy geranuims are good too.
A third choice would be an annual, Cosmos.

I agree about the geraniums. But one called Wargrave is proving itself to be a pretty thug. Totally overtaken a nice blue one.

I can never get geums to come back merlot. I do like them though.

Yes. They have brought heucheras on a lot, haven't they?! That kind of plant can add "distinction" to a flower bed.

I'd vote for Heucheras, in their infinite variety, because they just keep on giving. Current favourite is Caramel, which has looked good enough to eat right through winter.

I love Pieris, specially Forest Flame for it's bright red spring foliage. It's also evergreen and needs no care whatsoever.
I felt so lucky to have inherited a couple of healthy specimens with this house after leaving some behind with the previous house.

If I replied in 2 weeks, it would probably be another one- and 2 weeks later another- and 1 months ago something else!

Love the primroses, the pale natural yellow ones- and also the cowslips. There are tons in the passage next to the Church and I did take a few little clumps over the years.

At the moment, it is the peonies, both herbaceous and the tree ones- the dark crimson with yellow centre I brought over from UK is massive and the flowers ginormous. The other 2 I planted about 4 years ago I actually flowering for the first time- pale pink.

Next month will probably be the phlox in several colours- much Chelseya chop tomorrow.

I love Geums. I'm building up quite a collection of the 'Cocktail series'

Any tips jingl- where did you stay?

Geums. They come into flower well before the roses are out and look spectacular for ages. Currently, Mrs Bradshaw is making an exhibition of herself alongside geum rivale 'Leonard's Variety'. By the time they die down, the climbing rose will be in full flower to take over the show. Also Erysium Bowles Mauve, which just flowers it's head off right through the summer.

dustyangel Yes! We were so lucky. Three days of warm sunshine. I love Porto! I want to be there now!!!!

I have a neighbour who has a large lantana and it always surprises me as we live in a very cold area and lots of snow in winter.

Oh good.
jingle did you have good weather in Porto?

I thought of several and then popped outside for a minute and realised that I'd completely forgotten the Lantana Camera. It flowers almost all year round, the flowers are multicoloured and some years it seems more pink than yellow and sometimes a deep orange. I usually take it for granted but I cut it right back this year, (more of an Algarve attack than a Chelsea Chop!) and it has only just started flowering again. I hope it will do as well as last year and double its size by the Autumn.

If the photograph posts it was taken on December 24 last year.

I just love wild meadow daisies- and intend to go and get a few clumps for our field- again will take from an area where they are so plentiful and take a few bits here and there discreetly. Yes conservation I'd say.